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GM Signed Off On Part Even Though Below Specifications

Tina Robinson3 years ago

According to Reuters, a memo sent to the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Sunday gives new details in the General Motors ignition switch recall. On Friday, GM added more vehicles to its growing recall as investigations continue.

Delphi Warned GM

In testimony provided to House investigators by Delphi, the manufacturer of the defective switches, GM signed off on the ignition switches despite the parts not meeting design specifications in 2002. A document called the Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) was signed by GM executives in February 2002.

Delphi also told investigators that the 2006 redesign of the faulty switches was at the request of GM. The part manufacturer also noted that the redesigned switches were an improvement but still failed to meet GM specifications.

GM Recall Hearings Set to Begin

Two federal hearings are set to begin this week in Washington as the search for answers in the GM recall continues. On Tuesday, GM Chief Executive Officer Mary Barra, along with National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) acting administrator David Friedman, will testify before the House Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee. Wednesday, the Senate subcommittee will have its own hearing about the recall.

The deadline for GM to provide answers to 107 questions about the recall to the NHTSA is Thursday.

Investigators met in a closed-door briefing over the weekend with officials from GM, NHTSA, Delphi and Continental. U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pa.), who chairs the Oversight and Investigations subcommittee, said the 235,000 pages of documents provided by GM and the NHTSA “paint an unsettling picture.”

Why Did the NHTSA Not Act?

Congressional hearings this week will also look at why the NHTSA failed to act despite increasing indications that the federal agency was at least aware of a potential problem concerning enough to order an investigation in 2005.

E-mails also show in 2007 a recommendation for a deeper investigation into the fatal crashes was made, but the investigation was never conducted. The NHTSA also considered a second investigation that would never happen in 2010.

More GM Vehicles Recalled

Friday GM announced that it was adding 971,000 vehicles to its ignition switch recall. The expansion accounts for new models that could potentially have been repaired with older defective switches. The ignition switch was redesigned in 2006 but because the part number was never changed, it is almost impossible to tell the redesigned parts from defective ones.

GM also added another confirmed fatality on Friday, raising the death count to 13. All told, there have been 2.2 million vehicles recalled by GM over the defective ignition switches.